


Frozen Hearts

by pastelpinkpixwrites



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Frozen (Disney Movies) Fusion, Coming of Age, Dysfunctional Family, F/M, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Implied/Referenced Transphobia, M/M, More tags will be added as they come up please check back, Non-Consensual, Warnings will be posted at the beginning of chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:40:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27335086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pastelpinkpixwrites/pseuds/pastelpinkpixwrites
Summary: ...when living in a castle, people envy you as is the way of man.  You live lavishly when others can barely afford to keep bread on the table with their meager jobs and while trading was big in Neverwinter, because of the location, it wasn’t a prime place for anyone.  If they were part of the mainland, it may have proved to have been better, though that was for the gods to decide, not them.For the twins whose footsteps reverberated off the high stone walls, they were unaware of the resentment people felt towards them.  As far as they knew, no one outside of these four walls existed, and for Lup and Taako, that was quite enough.Taako finds true love in all the places he never expected to look.
Relationships: Barry Bluejeans/Lup, Kravitz/Taako (The Adventure Zone), Sazed/Taako (The Adventure Zone)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 17





	1. A Princess and her Knight

**Author's Note:**

> Here's my project for Nanowrimo this year! If you'd like to follow my journey, feel free to find me here: https://nanowrimo.org/participants/jessimessi
> 
> Warnings for this chapter: Family dysfunction and child neglect.  
> Just a note: Lup is pre-transitioned in this chapter and there is some misgendering of her by people towards the middle/end.
> 
> Please enjoy!

When one speaks of a castle, fantastic images of princesses in long flowing gowns protected from fire breathing dragons by a knight in shining armor on a white steed is usually par for the course.

What’s left out is the fact that living inside of a castle can be one of the most isolating and lonely experiences of a royal’s life. Of course, provisions were much easier to come by and the threat of violence and robbery weren’t nearly as prevalent as they were in the lower, more modest parts of the kingdom of Neverwinter. Luckily, being a hidden peninsula of a country behind a mountain range definitely lent itself to a lot of protection, and while there was a fleet (once again, of those knights) ready for battle when needed, it was a once in a lifetime opportunity for them to actually see to their jobs.

Despite all of this, when living in a castle, people envy you as is the way of man. You live lavishly when others can barely afford to keep bread on the table with their meager jobs, and while trading was big in Neverwinter, because of the location, it wasn’t a prime place for anyone. If they were part of the mainland, it may have proved to have been better, though that was for the gods to decide, not them.

For the twins whose footsteps reverberated off the high stone walls, they were unaware of the resentment people felt towards them. As far as they knew, no one outside of these four walls existed, and for Lup and Taako, that was quite enough.

They didn’t see their parents much as the King and Queen were much too busy with their titles rather than their children. When asked by close friends why they chose to have children, they responded as any royal would: To produce an heir to the throne. Quite surprisingly when the Queen had delivered two twin boys, it seemed like their need for more children was now unnecessary.

While this was true, the parents found their children… Odd. And not in the sense of them being quirky and goofy as children often were, no. They were downright strange. Instead of wanting to sword fight, they hung around with the servants learning to sew, listening to the bards sing old folk songs, dabble in small cantrips and other magics.

Most peculiar of all was their fascination with the kitchen staff. Taako especially. It seemed both twins had a knack for the culinary arts, picking up recipes quickly by just watching the servants once or twice. When they snuck out of their room at night, they could often be found in a heap of flour and pots strewn across the floor, laughing and giggling at one another as they tossed the powder back and forth at each other.

Lup would always be scolded more-so than Taako as Lup was the first born son. He would take the throne as King. Taako was younger by a few minutes and therefore was not of any interest to his parents at all and even at such a young age, he was more than fine with that. He didn’t have any interest in running a Kingdom whatsoever and was more than happy to leave that responsibility to Lup.

Things were good for the twins. They were in the comfortable monotony of getting into trouble and hiding from it in the kitchen with an older elven woman they referred to as Auntie. She had taught the twins that there was magic in cooking even if you weren’t casting a spell. Taako would always look at her, green eyes shimmering brightly with the prospect while Lup would blow a raspberry and demand that he see the magic himself. Somehow, Auntie always managed to make magic right under both of their noses.

It was late one winter night when the twins were in their vast bedroom, snow twirling through the darkened sky under the calm that only came with a winter storm. Taako’s eyes shone in the limited light streaming in from the large windows which lined an entire wall of the room, making the snow nearly impossible for a young elven child (already much older than most of the humans living in the Kingdom) to ignore. Lup had, of course, followed suit and rolled out of his bed, moving over to the cushioned nook that he always wished mother would come back to read them a story. She did once a very long time ago, and since then, she never had again. Lup didn’t want to admit that it affected him as negatively as it did, but when all your parents ever spoke about was the fact that you would rule over Neverwinter one day, it got tiring even for a child.

Taako had snuck up behind Lup and made him jump when he poked his brother’s side, giggling as Lup swatted his hand away.

“I don’t wanna sleep.” Taako said quietly, playing with a stray golden curl in front of a pointed ear. Lup nodded and turned, looking over at their play chest and smiling.

“Auntie snuck us some new things, let’s see.” Lup declared, getting down from the nook and approaching the worn wooden chest at the side of the expansive room. Their room was the size of most of the village houses, though at their age, they were none the wiser. Opening the lid to the chest slowly, the hinges creaked loudly enough to make Lup’s ears flatten slightly, though he didn’t bother pausing. No one heard anything in these cavernous hallways until it was too late which is why the twins got away with murder. Taako peeked inside the box and smiled, looking at what Auntie had snuck into them. Lup had taken the bundle and stowed it away in the chest before either of them had had a chance to look at it.

Taako pulled out a wooden horse, running his hand over a straw-made mane of hair that stuck out wildly. It reminded him of Lup’s hair, though not as curly. There were a few homemade hats, some worn and stained and some new that Auntie must have made just for them. There was a carriage that went with the horse toy, some wooden soldiers, an old rusted helmet…

And a garment at the bottom that Auntie had used to wrap everything up in. Lup pulled out the old fabric, intricate hand embroidered flowers wrapping around a skirt with a ruffled hem.

“Who would wear that?” Taako stuck his tongue out at it, though Lup’s matching green eyes glistened for a moment as he gazed at it.

“I would.”

“You’re a boy, Lup.”

“So? Who says boys can’t wear dresses?” Lup stuck his own tongue out, though it was directed at his brother. Taako didn’t say anything in response, not really having an argument for the other twin, watching as he slipped the dress over his head, getting lost in the ample material. Of course, that brought forth a peal of laughter from the youngest twin earning him a well deserved glare when a mop of golden curls finally poked through the neckline. It was still huge on Lup, the neckline hanging loosely off of his shoulder and down his arm, the frills at the bottom of the large pooled skirt tickling his feet. Doing an awkward turn, Lup nearly tripped, but turned to Taako and smiled. “Whaddya think?”

“You… Look nice.” Taako told him, crossing over to the pile of toys now strewn about. Picking up the helmet, he put it on his head, holding his pointer finger out as though it were a sword. “I’ll protect you, princess Lup!” He declared as he moved into what he could only assume was a battle position.

“Protect me from what, dingus?” Lup laughed.

“Uh, duh, the fire breathing dragon coming to eat you.” Taako rolled his eyes though it was difficult to see him do that from within the confines of the helmet.

“Fire breathing, huh?” Lup looked down at his fingers, well, tried too. The sleeves of the dress covered his hands and he had to shake them up in the air to retrieve his hands back. Once he did, bright crackles of flame sparked around his fingertips until he lifted his hands and shot off a small blast of flame. Taako watched with his mouth agape, smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

While Taako and Lup could make the “magic” with food that their Auntie told them about, Lup also had a knack for actual magic too. Fire magic, specifically, which wasn’t a shock considering that their mother was an evocation wizard. She’d dabbled in transmutation but found her comfort in flame, much like Lup did. Taako had read through some of the books as soon as he’d learned to read and to him, transmutation sounded way cooler, but maybe that was another reason that his parents didn’t like him as much as Lup.

“Hell yeah! That’s what I’m talking about!” Taako threw his fist in the air, hopping back and forth excitedly.

“Taako!” Lup shrieked at the language he knew neither of them were supposed to use, especially at their age. His brother ignored it and stuck out his finger again.

“Look out Princess Lup!” Swinging his hand in the direction of where Lup had shot the flame off, Lup put a hand to his forehead and pretended to be a damsel in need of saving. He made his voice higher and batted his lashes at Taako who was concentrating on where Lup was planning to fire off another bit of evocation magic, ready with his “sword” and his tongue poking out over his bottom lip. After a while, Taako was huffing and puffing from following the spells and Lup was laughing a much higher pitched laugh than Taako was used to. 

“Listen,” Taako plopped himself down on the rug that now housed all the toy chest contents. “Are you a girl?” He got straight to the point and Lup took a minute to think about it. He did enjoy when his hair was longer and many outsiders believed the prince to be a princess whenever they saw him. Taako as well, though Taako was the first to assert the fact that he was a boy. Lup never really bothered. He liked when people thought he was a girl. He loved seeing the different dresses that the peasant girls would wear when playing in the street, watching as their matching hair ribbons fluttered in the breeze after them as they ran.

“Maybe?” Lup looked down at the dress, gathering the skirt material in his hands and smiling fondly. “I don’t think I’d mind being a girl.” He let that thought simmer for a moment before the smile cracked across his whole face. “Maybe I could be a princess for real.”

“I guess.” Taako agreed with a shrug. It didn’t matter to him what Lup was, just that they were best friends and always together. “But you’re kinda missing…” He held his tiny freckle-covered hands out in front of his chest and Lup looked up at him, confused for a few seconds. Once understanding dawned, he shrieked in high pitched laughter, lunging towards Taako and tackling him to the ground.

“You’re such a dork!” He told Taako as his brother wrestled to get control in this tackle.

“And there’s a fire breathing princess trying to kill me!” Taako waved his “sword” in Lup’s face which made him chuckle, pulling his hand back to fire off a spell. This gave Taako an edge to slip out from under him, but heard a terrible gasp come from Lup as the heat of a spell surrounded him.

Lup could only watch as the flame danced around Taako, his eyes wide in terror as it did. It didn’t hurt, which was strange, but the flame seemed to expand outward before it dove towards his head, disappearing inside of him. His normally tan complexion had gone pale, sweat pouring off his brow as he clutched at the sides of his head.

“L-Lulu?” He asked with terror stricken eyes before he collapsed to the floor with a dull thud. The sudden silence was deafening before Lup burst out into tears screaming and running over to his twin, reaching a hand out and touching his face. His skin was burning and under his shaggy blonde bangs, his hair was smoldering away from his skin… But that wasn’t the most terrifying of all.

His temple had turned black where Lup’s magic had forced its way inside of him. The more he watched, the more the black traveled, the smell of burning flesh nauseating to the small boy as he let out an ear piercing scream.

Things from there were blurry. There was a servant rushing into the room and scooping Taako’s limp form up in her arms, frantically looking around the room as another came into the room holding a candle.

“Alert the King and Queen, something has happened.” The servant near the door tore down the hallway as the female one looked down at Taako. The smell was unbearable and she gagged as the embers continued to eat away at his flesh, Lup running over to the woman and clutching her bed dress in her fist.

“Koko! Is he okay? I didn’t mean to! We were playing and-!”

“Lup!” The sound of their mother’s voice startled him out of his own babbling, rushing over to take Taako from the servant’s arms. When the Queen held him, it felt as though she was holding a dark stone that had laid out in the summer sun for far too long, her matching green eyes wide with freight.

“Lup, what did you do?” The King’s voice was deep and awe inspiring, and while admittedly not having heard it a whole lot throughout their lives, Lup was terrified.

“It… We were playing. It was an accident!” Lup now had his hands over his nose and mouth, trying to block out the disgusting scent of his brother’s skin being eaten away.

“Lup, how many times have I told you that magic is not a toy!” His mother was panicking watching the black spot on his temple growing over his forehead by the moment.

“What do we do?” The King crossed over to look at Taako in his wife’s arms, pale and lifeless.

“The trolls.” The Queen uttered quietly.

“...Trolls.” The King repeated and the Queen nodded fiercely. In the mountains of Neverwinter lived the trolls who would whisk away abandoned and forgotten children to the mountains. They would raise them, instill a sense of magic and wonder into them, then erase all memory of their life with them before they were sent off into the world. They were guardians, protectors, and incredible mages who could create as much as they could destroy.

The Queen handed Taako to her husband before crossing the room, bedskirts fluttering around her ankles. Unlocking the huge windows adjacent to the nook, she pushed them open as snow and wind fought its way into the twins’ room. Lup’s eyes were glued to his brother, his heart slamming in his chest, tears still pouring down onto the skirt of the dress, dark fingerprints of guilt clutching at him.

The sounds of a language that Lup didn’t know came from his mother. It wasn’t elvish, it wasn’t common, he wasn’t even sure that it was a commonly spoken language among people. There was a certain song-like quality to it that Lup almost felt lost to for a moment until it abruptly ended and the whipping of the wind was all that remained… 

Until there were voices. Voices calling back that same haunting melody that his mother had just sent outwards. And sure enough, Lup blinked and dozens, no hundreds, of glowing eyes appeared outside of the window and he gasped harshly, running behind his father’s leg.

“My Queen.” One of the trolls spoke, coming to stand on the window sill. Despite the fact that they were outside, there was no evidence of snow on him, nor the other trolls now making their inside.

“Please, my son!” She pointed to Taako and the troll crossed the room, not taking steps so much as gliding silently over. Reaching out a hand that was covered in vines and moss--no made of vines and moss?--the mysterious man hovered that hand over Taako, recoiling immediately.

“What on earth happened?” The man asked, a few flowers falling from his long white beard despite it being the dead of winter.

“Elder Merle, is that not… A curse?” Another troll asked and the one known as Merle squinted for a moment.

“I-It was my fault!” Lup spoke up, obviously terrified. “We were playing and I accidentally fired a spell and it hit Taako and please! Please save my brother!” Lup wailed and his father shoved him back behind his leg. Merle listened to the child then turned back to the Queen.

“I had no idea the Prince was such a talented wizard.” Merle told the Queen, and for the first time, Lup saw his mother shed tears. The King sneered and the elder troll moved closer to him, though this time, he dropped his gaze to Lup. “How long have you had your powers, Prince Lup?” From here, Lup could see that the troll only had one eye, the other covered with an eye patch that resembled the bark that his one arm was made of.

“A-As long as I can remember.” The horrified young boy replied. Merle raised his wooden hand and let his hover over Lup’s head, similar to the way that he’d done to Taako.

“Or should I say, Princess?” Merle smiled down at Lup who looked at the old man in awe. He turned his attention upwards, floating higher off the ground. Merle was much shorter than the King and had to raise quite a bit to be able to see Taako fully. “You’re lucky it was his head. Usually the ol’ noggin can take more of a magical beating. Any of those spells you fire off, keep them away from his chest or I won’t be able to do much about it next time.” Merle told everyone in the room, though mostly Lup.

Another string of strange language fell from Merle’s lips, his hands waving over Taako’s head as though to pull the magic out of him like a rope. Little by little, the burning smell ebbed and the blackening stopped as red arcane power was pulled from Taako. When Merle was finished, he waved his hands apart to dispel the magic and the color was starting to come back to Taako’s features.

“Is he okay?” Lup spoke up finally and Merle gave the boy a small nod.

“He’ll recover. But like I said, next time, you need to be more careful.”

“There will never be a next time.” The King roared as the Queen crossed the room to take Taako in her arms. Lup had never seen such affection shown towards either of them. “Lup. Until you can learn to control that magic of your’s, you aren’t to go near your brother. Is that clear?”

“But… But Papa, we’re… Best friends.” The tears had started up again. Merle’s soft expression flattened and he sighed.

“There is a solution, though it can be rather cruel. Especially for twins.” He wouldn’t use the term ‘brothers’ and for some reason that Lup couldn’t understand, he was grateful. “I suggest that we erase the memory of Lup’s magic from Taako. Replace it, if you will, with other memories. That way, he will be kept safe and Lup will have a chance to rebuild that trust.”

“It… It won’t do any damage to him, will it?” The Queen asked quietly and Merle shook his head.

“Like I said, the head is a bit stronger than the heart. Memory sculpting is something we do best.” There was a murmur from the crowd of eyes outside of the window. The Queen looked to her husband who was stone faced, his jaw set tightly. Looking back to Merle, she nodded once, sitting on the floor cradling Taako to her breast as Merle once more looked over the boy. It took a lot of concentration and whispers from the additional trolls, and after a few moments, he stepped back with a look of satisfaction. “Taako will recover.”

“Thank you.” The Queen said in a hush.

“What about me?” Lup spoke up once more, hands clasped in front of himself. “Can you erase the magic from my head too?”

“Now Lup, that would be impossible. Your arcane abilities are within you and are a part of you. You may be more of a sorcerer than a wizard, y’know. If I take that away, you won’t be who you were meant to be. Use that power to help rule your people, but if you choose to fear it, it will destroy you. Hate to be the bearer of bad news, kiddo but that’s how the magic stuff goes.”

“But… What if I hurt Taako again?”

“Again. You will stay away from him until this is all under control.” The King interjected despite the small noise of the Queen.

“We can’t keep them from each other…” She protested, but the King put his hand up to silence her.

“I thank you for saving my son.” The King gave a curt nod to Merle who didn’t even bother to acknowledge it before he turned his back. Before gliding back towards the window, he shot another reassuring glance back at Lup which made him feel somewhat better.

“Remember what I said, kid.” Merle told him and just as quickly as they appeared, the eyes were gone and the window was magically shut.


	2. Just Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings for this chapter: More family dysfunction/neglect. Also a touch of gender dysphoria, though mild.

Things were never quite the same after that. Taako was none the wiser to anything that happened during that snowy night, though the thoughts and memories plagued Lup’s mind for years to come. Shortly after, Lup was moved to his own room down the hall from Taako, and for the longest time, Taako wondered if he’d done something wrong. Whenever they would pass each other in the halls, Lup’s eyes would always find the ground, ducking into his room where the door would shut fast behind him.

For a while, Taako was positive that he would forget what his brother looked like had they not been identical.

That’s not to say that Taako gave up hope that maybe one day, Lup would change his mind and start playing with him again, but the more he waited, the more it seemed impossible. Both of them were growing up and in doing so, growing farther and farther apart. The King would eat with Lup while The Queen would eat with Taako at different times, fragmenting the already broken family further.

Lup missed his mother, her soft smiles and the way she would run her fingers through his hair. He always hoped that maybe now, Taako would be on the receiving end of that affection, seeing as he never was one to have it. Little did he know that their mother was just as cold to him as ever, never once showing that same love she did the night he was injured.

No, all that remained from that night was the scar on Taako’s temple that he hid under his long bangs, braiding his now long hair to the side so that it was sure to be hidden from sight. Lup was grateful that he couldn’t see it, a reminder of his past mistakes.

Their father had taken Lup under his wing even more since the incident. The King had a leatherworker in the Kingdom create gloves for him to wear after a few too many close calls with the magic that he feared. The older Lup got, the more out of control it seemed to become. Lup wanted more than anything to join Taako in the library, to read up on the magic that he had been born with and how to control it. Instead, he watched from afar as his brother began learning transmutation magic (much to their parents' chagrin), writing down formulas and numbers that no child could ever understand. Through his determination, however, Taako developed his own understanding despite not knowing terms or technicalities and he became pretty skilled by the time that they were both young teens.

By this point, it seemed as though the damage caused by the wedge between them was unfixable, despite the fact that Lup still felt Taako’s eyes glued to him whenever they were in the same vicinity.

When they were (the human equivalent of) 15, the true test came to be. The King and Queen were to leave for a voyage to a distant country to negotiate terms of treaty to avoid the wars growing on the mainland. While Neverwinter was far away from all of it, it still would behoove them to keep allies just in case.

“Lup,” the King called him and Lup walked over, golden hair loose despite his father’s orders to do something with it. He could forgive the length that both boys kept their hair at, but at least Taako insisted on having it plaited and resting over his shoulder. In fact, looking at Taako and Lup, Taako definitely fit the part of the king-to-be more than his brother. Taako took great care in how he looked, always in (very bright) matched clothing with not a stitch out of place. Lup on the other hand didn’t enjoy dressing up. In fact, the more time that he could avoid looking himself in the face in the mirrors around the castle, he would. The vast amount of clothing found in his closet, well, most of it went untouched. Green eyes would scan the different colors and styles, ruffles and frills… Yet the article that his eyes always befell was that stained and tattered dress that Auntie had brought him all those years ago. The older he got, the better it fit, and had it not had such painful memories attached to it, Lup would make it a point to wear it more often.

“Yes, Papa.” Lup looked up at his father expectantly.

“We should be back in a month’s time. Until then, you must do your best to run the kingdom.” Lup knew it was coming, but he was absolutely terrified. A young boy of 15 expected to fulfill the duties of the king? It sounded like disaster from the start.

“Yes Papa.” He repeated.

“Taako. Stay out of trouble.” The King shot towards the other brother who rolled his eyes.

“Aye aye, Captain.” He mumbled with a grin. Lup felt the corners of his mouth turn upwards at the comment despite seeing the anger flaring behind their father’s eyes. The King grabbed Lup’s shoulder and gave it a tight squeeze before exiting the main hall, the Queen nodding to Taako and running her fingers through Lup’s wild hair.

“You’ll be fine.” She said quietly before turning on heel, walking out and closing the massive door behind her. That left just Taako and Lup in the cold, overly empty space, leaving Lup to wish that Taako would just walk away so he didn’t have this massive weight on his shoulders.

“So, how big of a party are we throwing?” Taako joked, because of course he wasn’t going to leave first.

“Taako, no. There’s not going to be a party.” Lup said with a sigh, still not turning to face him.

“It was a joke, Lulu. Lighten up.” The nickname made Lup’s breath hitch, his fists balling at his sides. He finally whirled around to look Taako in the eye, though his resolve broke instantly when he did. He hadn’t looked at his twin this up close or dead on in years and his heart ached terribly.

“Just listen to Father. Stay out of trouble.” Lup said curtly, pushing past Taako to retreat to his room. Listening for the slam of the door, Taako let out a breath he’d been holding since Lup turned to face him. A hand came up to brush his bangs out of his eyes before staying there for a moment too long.

At the end of the day, Taako missed Lup and sadly, it seemed like that feeling would continue.

A month came and passed without any word from the King and Queen’s ship, nor the mainland they were sailing towards. Each day was like another string snapping inside of Lup until there was a day when a messenger of mainland clothing appeared at the palace door. The news of the wreckage of their parents’ ship being recovered hung heavy in the air, as though Lup could make it untrue by not acknowledging it. Taako bitterly felt nothing.

As the two boys walked back to the castle after the funeral service for the late King and Queen, Lup shook silently as Taako followed behind.

“Hey,” Taako called to Lup who didn’t stop or slow down. “Maybe now we can, y’know, act like we’re related again. I know it was them who wouldn’t let us stay together for whatever reason.”

Lup bristled and stopped walking for a moment, Taako nearly walking directly into his back. Once he recovered he sighed and pushed the sleeves of the cumbersome black top up his forearms.

“I’m still down to protect princess Lup.” He offered quietly, hearing Lup choke on a sob.

“Taako… Taako, please don’t.” Lup picked up his pace to a run, leaving Taako behind in the square. Later on, he would find himself wishing desperately that the last thing he said to his brother was something much more eloquent than an inside joke from when they were children.

* * *

The Kingdom rejoiced for the first time in years, brightly colored flowers hung from flag posts, the maypole strung and ready for dance. It was a positively stunning spring day, the ones that wistful poets would dream of experiencing for themselves to put meaning behind their metaphors so often used. Even the royal bard, Johann was his name, found himself dreamily playing his violin in one of the courtyards of the castle, a rarity indeed.

“Your highness?” Came a voice from the door and Taako turned to face it, fixing the ribbon in his hair one last time. “You look dashing as ever.”

“Thanks Auntie. Not doing too bad yourself.” In all the years she’d worked for the family, Auntie had never been in anything other than servant’s garb. It had taken 21 years of life (whatever that equated to in elven years), but Taako had finally seen her looking beautiful in her Sunday best.

“Are you excited for today? A new King?” She clasped her hands together, though she noticed the slight distaste in Taako’s expression and realized her mistake. “Queen, I’m sorry. That’s going to take a bit of getting used to.”

In the six years since their parents had passed, the two children had grown up in relative silence. No one was allowed into the castle unless they worked there, and even then, contact was kept brief. That was apparently the will of the late King and Queen.

Without being under the ever watchful eye of her father, Lup had had the time to begin expressing who she really was. It came as no surprise to Taako that Lup began wearing dresses and asked to be referred to as Princess rather than Prince. To him, in fact, it seemed better than calling her his brother.

“Any mischief I should be on the lookout for from you tonight?”

“From me? You expect Taako to pull mischief?” He feigned offense, but of course, Auntie saw through the charade. “Nah, I figured I’d let Lup have her day. Maybe I’ll actually interact with people who don’t live here. Unheard of, I know.”

“I hear there are plenty of young princes who will be coming.” Auntie teased and Taako snorted, his gaze falling downward.

He counted himself lucky to have someone like Auntie in his life despite never saying as much. The woman had a way about her that made him feel safe and cared for in a way that he never felt from his mother. His parents had always labeled their children as strange, and now, the rest of the Kingdom felt the same undoubtedly.

Whereas Taako, now technically heir to the throne since Lup identified as female, had no intentions of taking over, Lup fully did. That would be plenty enough to alienate them, but Taako of course didn’t plan on ever marrying a princess either. Auntie watched the way his eyes would follow the young men out in the courtyards, and she’d been the first one who Taako told about his sexuality. Luckily, no one else really knew about that, or else their kingdom really would fall to pieces and his parents would be rolling around in their watery grave.

(Not that he gave two shits, but the sentiment was still there.)

Despite the acceptance that he had from his found family, he quietly wondered if Lup knew or even cared for that matter. He hadn’t seen his sister for more than a few moments in years, though today, he would finally have a chance.

“I’ll leave you to get ready.” Auntie said to him with a sweet smile, of course meaning mentally. Taako always had a way about him that he looked ready for the most prestigious of gatherings just by looking the way he normally did. But she also knew he was worried about finally interacting with Lup again, and that definitely weighed heavily on his mind.

The dark castle had been opened, wooden shutters and doors opened to invite the spring breeze inside. The freshness in the air swept through the dingy halls, flirting with the tapestries which hung dusty on the walls in an attempt to return them to their former glory. It didn’t help much, but it definitely brought more life into the otherwise dank hallways. The scent of lilacs drifted pleasantly around bends in stone, carried by the melancholic music that Johann still played outside. It was a totally different environment from the one that Taako had been thrown into the past few years of his life, and had he not spent every waking moment here, he wouldn’t believe that it was the same place.

Taako’s heeled boots clacked against the stone flooring as he walked out the massive front doors to the castle. Looking down at the cobblestones that covered the small bridge over some water, Taako had a strange sense of familiarity wash over him as he looked at those stones with peculiar markings or ones that were split certain ways. They were little reminders of when he and Lup would run around in the square just inside of the main gate to avoid when their parents were calling for them to come inside.

That spring breeze tempted Taako further, twirling around him and shaking loose some of the shorter curls at the top of his head which framed his face in a golden halo. As he stepped out of the ornate gates into the village square, he had to stop for a moment to let his heart hammer in his chest. He looked around at all the people going about their business and those fussing to get ready for the festivities. There were children chasing each other around while others weaved flowers into crowns for any friends who passed, the sounds of their laughter filling Taako with nostalgia he didn’t know he possessed.

Green eyes traveled towards the distant docks where ships of all shapes and sizes were moored, their flags as varied and colorful as the people pouring into the quaint streets of Neverwinter. He turned to go down the main boulevard of the town, walking through the trees which grew overhead, their branches tangling into one cohesive canopy and casting a fair bit of shade on the people who walked underneath.

Along this road were the shops of the town: the baker, the blacksmith, the carpenter, the tailor, and even the mortuary were located on the sides of the boulevard. It had been years since Taako had been past them, and the wood of the structures had been weathered but remained steady and strong. Despite all of them being closed for the day, Taako could see the love that these buildings had endured through the years, footfalls well worn in doorways and stairs. A flurry of movement caught his attention at the very end of the row--the mortuary, of course--and the wooden door shut suddenly. Raising a manicured brow, Taako just shrugged it off, walking past and out of the tree-lined path as he began to walk down towards the water.

Again, being surrounded by mountains was convenient but it was so rare to see ships in the harbor that Taako forgot what they looked like. Well, no he didn’t, but it seemed like he could have. Eyes sparkling in the sunlight, Taako looked up at the sails that reached impossibly high into the sky watching as they were drawn up to resist any wind that may take them. There were boats that were simple and ones embellished with fine paintings and carvings, and Taako found himself wanting to look closer. Attempting to move forward more, he felt his shoulder collide with something and just barely managed to catch himself on one of the wooden poles lining the dock. A mumbled swear pulled his attention up from where he was standing, coming face to face with another young man who looked to be about Taako’s age, perhaps a bit older.

“Sorry,” the half-elf said, looking Taako up and down as though he may have done some damage. “Just got off the boat, not used to ground that isn’t moving yet.” The man ran a hand through his sandy blonde hair, windswept from the journey.

“No harm, no foul, my man. Just a heads up though, there’s more of that unmoving ground ahead so…” Taako gave him a half smile and the man gave a small head nod in his direction.

“I’m uh, I’m Prince Sazed. Of the islands to the south of here.” He said as though he’d been announcing that title quite a bit today. Unbeknownst to Taako, he had.

“Prince Taako of, well, you’re looking at it.” Taako shrugged his shoulders and Sazed’s brown eyes went wide. Sazed instantly stepped into a deeper bow.

“Your majesty, shit--I-!”

“Not that Prince.” Taako snorted at the man’s display. “Well, actually just the Prince. My sister’s the one getting crowned today, I’m just along for the ride.” Sazed looked up with confusion, though he recalled one night on the sea that there was quite a bit of gossip going on about the whole situation. Had the half-elf not been so flustered, he may have asked Taako about it, but he was distracted.

Taako was beautiful. There was no way around that fact and no one would ever deny it. His tanned skin was dusted in freckles, particularly standing out across the bridge of his nose and under his eyes. That darker skin accentuated the golden blonde, loosely curled hair that seemed to move ever so perfectly whenever he moved his head. And his eyes… They were perhaps the loveliest shade of green, not quite as dark as rich emeralds but not as light as playful peridot. Even his smile was charming, a half smirk that showed off a gap between his top two teeth that only served to make him look more distinguished if at all possible.

It was then that Sazed realized that he was staring and he broke himself out of it, blush staining his cheeks darkly as Taako continued to smile. Taako wasn’t exactly hiding the fact that he was staring at Sazed either, as though he’d never seen someone outside of the castle. To be fair, he really hadn’t, but it probably didn’t require him to stare for as long as he had. But all that be damned, the guy he literally ran into was good looking and there was no harm in partaking in that!

The noon bells tolled from deep within the village and Taako snapped out of the spell he was under, attention dragged directly to the direction of the sound.

“Oh fuck me, it’s starting.” Taako groaned and started hurrying back up the ramp of the docks. “Hey, I’ll uh, catch you at the celebration I guess. Gotta go do all the coronation crapola. You know how it is.” He shot at Sazed over his shoulder.

“Yeah, see you… See you later.” Sazed bade Taako with a pathetic wave as the slim man moved to a light jog. Sazed watched as Taako’s form retreated into the crowd as the bells continued to ring throughout the area, a soft smile on his face. 

Perhaps this wouldn’t be such a dull waste of time after all.


	3. First Time in Forever

Lup hated this, all of it really. She was fine with taking charge and she was ready for change, but she never wanted to be in the spotlight. While as a child she was quite wild and carefree, she grew up much more reserved, and not from the isolation either. Lup had a great fear towards herself and the magic that she possessed and unfortunately before her mother died, she’d barely spoken to Lup about it. Now that running a Kingdom was on the horizon for her, Lup’s focus had shifted.

Looking down at the black leather on her hands, she traced the runes on the backs of her knuckles, intricately embroidered in and enchanted. She was told once that the thread was spun using phoenix feathers, though that was when she had first gotten them when she was a child. Who knew if that was still true for the many pairs that she had acquired over the years.

Gazing at the massive gates in front of the castle, a figure caught her eye. It was dressed in fine white and gold, purple accents prevalent throughout to match the ribbon in the braided hair. Lup envied her brother for being able to simply walk off as though today wasn’t the biggest day of his life... because it wasn’t. Today was Lup’s destiny. And forgive her if that seemed daunting.

Having lost sight of her brother as he folded into the crowd of townsfolk and newcomers, Lup retreated back from the window, her skirts swishing around her ankles. This would be her first public appearance in her correct identity, and for that, her dress was made with the utmost care and detail. The main bodice was made with a fine maroon, shimmering golden stitching that caught the light when she moved. Her skirts were layered in simple black and reds that complimented each other nicely, matching the maroon cape with gold lacing which trailed behind her. Her curls fell delicately down her back, the sides pinned up with some sparkling picks which drew attention to her high cheekbones.

Looking at herself in the looking glass, she had to admit, she felt like herself and that was something that she never expected. Maybe this whole thing would be worth it if she got to live life like this each day.

Not one to get ahead of herself, Lup began walking towards the door with a deep breath, holding the handle as though if she stopped now, everything would remain the same. No, Lup was definitely ready for change, and with that, she threw the door open and strode down the hall.

* * *

Taako didn’t like churches. There were too many people crammed into too close of a space and everyone expected you to act as though you had never breathed in your life. The worst was when you stumbled in nearly too late, panting for breath as you walked down to stand where your sister was going to be crowned within moments. As Taako walked, his eyes connected with Auntie’s who just ducked her head in knowing as he tucked his stray curls behind a long ear in a futile attempt for them to stay out of his face.

No sooner had he taken his position at the front with the… Priest? Father? Rabbi? Fancy dude in a white robe? Lup had appeared, backlit by the sunny day behind her. Her face was straight and dutiful despite some of the murmurs of the crowd as she proceeded down to take her place where so many ancestors had been crowned before her. Taako watched nearly entranced by her, seeing how she moved and held herself so perfectly, something he could never even dream of doing with such grace.

When had Lup become so regal? Perhaps that’s what she had been doing behind those closed doors for so long.

The ceremony had gone off without a hitch and now all that was left was the festivities, much to Taako’s pleasure. All the boring royal stuff was great and all (it wasn’t) but walking into the main ballroom of the castle to see it filled with guests, the deep red curtains drawn to show the setting sun from the extravagant windows, was. He wasn’t supposed to be in the ballroom yet, he was supposed to be waiting to be announced, but something so trivial couldn’t stop him at this rate.

The loud kerfuffle of conversations with foreign accents filled his ears, the scents of different food wafting from the long buffet table. Taako could only barely remember the last time anyone besides himself was in this room. This was a whole new world to him, and he had to say, he loved it.

“Attention,” one of the guards standing at the front of the room bellowed, his voice washing over the crowd into a hush.

“Shit,” Taako muttered and started elbowing his way through the crowd.

“Presenting: Queen Lup of Neverwinter.” Lup walked towards the throne, the same regal stance unbroken as the sparkling crown of their late mother rested on the top of her head. “And… Um…”

“Don’t get your stockings in a bunch, kemosabe, I'm here.” Taako walked up the stairs to stand next to Lup, though much less stiffly.

“Prince Taako of Neverwinter.” As he was announced, the crowd broke out into applause and Taako smiled at them enough to show the gap in between his front two teeth. Side-eyeing Lup, he could see that she, too, had the edges of her lips curled upwards into a delicate smile and that made him feel a bit of warmth in his chest.

Once the crowd had devolved back into chattering and the band had struck up some music, Taako let out a breath and finally turned to Lup. This was his twin, his best friend when he was younger, someone who shouldn’t have felt so daunting to talk to. Tongue filled with led, Taako cleared his throat.

“You’re looking good.” He told her, not expecting the soft expression she wore as she turned fully towards her.

“So are you.” Lup’s voice was higher than his own and lacked the harshness that his had. It was fascinating to hear her voice after so long of silence.

“Guess I was right about that whole ‘princess’ thing, huh?”

“I guess so.” Lup shifted awkwardly, her gloved hands clasping tighter in front of her.

“So what are we supposed to do at this kinda thing? Stand here and look like the statues in the hall?”

“No, we can talk and dance… Really, we can do whatever we want. We’re in charge here, remember?” When she said that, Taako could see that there was a special little sparkle in her eye that reminded him of all the times that she suggested they stay up late when they were younger… And when they were still close.

“Should we show them some hell, then?” Taako threw his thumb over his shoulder towards the dance floor and held his other hand out to Lup. She looked down at it like it would hurt to take it, though it just flexed slightly to urge her on. Taking in a deep breath--one too deep for the corset she was wearing--she slipped her hand inside of Taako’s, immediately being pulled out onto the cherry-stained wood of the dance floor. “Time to make use of all those hoity-toity dance lessons Mom and Pops had us do, huh?”

“Yeah.” Lup laughed, letting Taako take the lead.

It was nice to be like this, carefree and talking to one another as they whisked around the dance floor. Lup’s skirts twirled out far past her body, catching Taako up inside of them like a warmly colored ocean in its waves. Seeing Lup’s face cracked into a huge smile and hearing her laugh made so much fondness swell in his heart, Taako was afraid of never feeling this again. Fuck, he’d missed her so much, and whether she was his brother or his sister, all that mattered is she was with him again.

“I missed this,” Lup said finally when they’d stopped twirling. They were both out of breath and smiling, but Taako had to respond.

“I did too. Fuck, Lulu, it felt like we didn’t even know each other anymore.”

“I know Koko, I…” That name felt so foreign on her tongue, though it had just come out as though it were second nature.

Just as she was going to continue what she was saying, a slim looking half-elven man made his way over to them, a charming smile on his face. Before Lup could even ask who it was, Taako had let her go and had turned towards the stranger who didn’t appear all that strange to him.

“Lulu, this is Prince Sazed.” Taako was smiling suspiciously as he introduced the stranger.

“Um…” She didn’t know how to react to Taako actually knowing someone from outside the castle. Sazed looked at her strangely, up and down as though scrutinizing her. Thinking about it, he probably was. Most people had heard about the rather unorthodox way that Neverwinter had come to have a queen rather than a king.

“Your majesty,” the man bowed deeply, his messy hair falling over his shoulders despite being pulled back into a low ponytail. “I wanted to extend my congratulations.”

“Oh, thank you, Prince Sazed.” Her hands instantly clasped back in front of her, a silent way of closing herself off. Taako noticed and raised a brow before turning back to Sazed.

“Hey my man, you mind giving us a second?” He asked Sazed who instantly looked a bit surprised but he gave a curt nod and backed away towards the crowd. Once he was out of eyeshot, Taako turned back to Lup and gave her a look.

“I… Sorry, it’s been a while since I talked to someone outside of well, anyone.” Lup gave a sad little chuckle.

“It’s cool.” Taako bit at his lip for a moment before continuing. “But that can all change now at least.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, everything’s okay now, yeah? I mean, we’re talking for the first time in forever.” Taako shrugged and Lup’s expression quickly felt flat.

“Taako, I don’t think that’s going to be how it is.” Lup looked down at her hands for a moment, missing the look of betrayal in Taako’s face.

“Why not?”

“I… Listen, it’s complicated.”

“What’s so fucking complicated about it?!” Taako was getting angrier now, though he was at least keeping his voice down. Despite that, Lup turned away from him, not wanting to have this conversation anymore. “Fine. Listen, I’ll catch you later. Have fun.” The words were hollow and Taako also turned on his heel to make his way back through the crowd. 

His chest ached terribly and he felt the need to shed tears that were collecting in the corners of his eyes, but he would be damned if he cried here in front of all of these rich assholes.

Just as Taako was about to be free of the gaggle of people, someone caught his elbow. Whirling around, Taako was about to give the stranger what for… Only to be met with a pair of blue eyes looking at him with concern.

“You alright, your highness?” Sazed asked gently, watching as Taako deflated slightly.

“I’m fine.” He bit out.

“Liar.” Sazed smiled, pulling Taako’s arm towards him so that his thin body ended up against Sazed’s. He blinked a few times as though this wasn’t actually happening, though the image of the handsome person now holding him in position to dance didn’t disappear. Sazed gave a half-smile and started to lead him in a dance with the rest of the people on the floor, that aching in Taako’s chest giving way to a fluttering in his stomach as his hand found its way to Sazed’s shoulder while the other tangled with the other’s hand.

They danced in silence for a while, ignoring the glances and whispers flung their way until Taako stopped them suddenly.

“You wanna get out of here? Get some air that isn’t breathed by a bunch of snobby dickwads?” Sazed chuckled at Taako’s question and nodded.

“I think that’d be great.”


	4. True Monsters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey dudes, there's smut in this chapter. It's kind of consensual kinda not so I put the non-con rating there just to be safe. If you are uncomfortable with that, go to where the line break is and read the last two sentences before it and then skip the first paragraph after the line break and you'll be good to go.
> 
> Thank you all for your continued support, I'm more than half way to my nanowrimo goal!

Hours had passed as Taako gave Sazed a tour of the castle, now ending up in the garden, the sounds of the party just a dull roar in the background of their conversation.

“You have how many brothers?”

“Twelve.”

“Jeezy Creezy.”

“You’re telling me. Try getting a word in edgewise with twelve older brothers.”

“Try getting one in with a sister who suddenly decides you don’t exist.” Taako snorted, shaking his head slightly. Sazed turned to him and stopped walking for a moment, narrowing his eyes before reaching out to Taako’s face. For a moment, Taako froze, feeling the gloved fingers tucking some blonde curls behind his ear.

“What’s this?” Sazed asked, looking at the one flaw on Taako’s face. The raised white scar on his temple stood out brightly against the tanned tone of his skin and made Sazed wonder how he hadn’t noticed before.

“I was born with it.” Taako shrugged. “I had a weird dream that some creepy old troll with an eyepatch kissed my forehead though, so I figured that’s probably got something to do with it.” Sazed gave a bark of laughter at the further explanation and that smile continued. “What?”

“Nothing.”

“Now who’s the liar?” Taako retorted and Sazed slid an arm around his waist. The contact was warm and made Taako feel oddly safe despite being with a relative stranger. Despite that, they circled back for a couple more hours to the main hall of the castle, deserted with all the help in the ballroom. They hadn’t stopped talking and laughing the entirety of the time and every bit of conversation was effortless, something Taako wasn’t sure he’d be able to do after not conversing with anyone outside of the castle for so long.

Taako pulled Sazed up the stone stairs towards the bed chambers, Sazed nearly stumbling after the elf. Once they’d made it to Taako’s room, he opened the large door, still dragging Sazed by the hands inside before the doors slammed closed behind them both.

Taako stood with his back against the doors, looking at Sazed with a devious expression which the other prince returned.

“Your home is beautiful. Kind of see why you shut yourself up here.” One of Sazed’s still-gloved hands pressed flat against the bedroom door next to Taako’s head. He closed the distance between them slightly, eyes lidding gently as his free hand tucked under Taako’s chin to pull his lips a bit closer. “I’d shut myself up here too if I was with you.”

Taako leaned in the rest of the way, pressing his lips to Sazed’s soundly. He had no idea what he was doing and felt like a bull in a china shop, moving his mouth with his partner’s and trying not to expose his inexperience. Although it wasn’t like it wasn't common knowledge by now that he’d had no one to so much as talk to for years. Granted, talking and kissing were two vastly different skills, but it seemed like Taako wasn’t half bad at either of them.

Sazed’s tongue licked along his bottom lip and Taako opened his mouth, letting the other man plunge the appendage in as he pressed against Taako. A small moan came from the elf, something about the motion setting him ablaze, the hairs on the back of his neck standing straight up. His own arms came up to circle around Sazed’s shoulders, much more broad than his own, and pulled their chests together.

When they eventually pulled back for air, Taako was left panting heavily, the only thing keeping him up and off the floor was Sazed’s arm that had wound up around his waist at some point. The two looked into each other’s eyes for the longest time, studying each other’s faces as Sazed’s hand moved down Taako’s hip to the front of his pants. He was hard and bucked his hips to meet the hand over him, lip finding itself under his teeth.

“Do you want this?” Sazed breathed into the limited space between them. Taako took a moment as though he didn’t understand the question, though the insistent hand that stroked him through his pants did little to help him. Knees nearly buckling, Taako wordlessly pressed their lips back together, though this time, it was more feverish than it had been before.

Both men found their way over to Taako’s large and spacious bed, the elf being lowered back onto the sheets gently as Sazed crawled over him, like a predator about to pounce. Taako’s heart slammed in his chest, nervous beyond any reasonable doubt but also ready for whatever was about to come.

At least that’s what he thought until Sazed’s lips were kissing down his neck, tongue pressing against a spot that made Taako shudder and moan. It made it much easier to get his clothes off this way, Taako was quite distracted and was letting Sazed do whatever he pleased. Because of this, he found his coats and shirts gone in a very short amount of time and Sazed was kissing down the planes of his chest to his stomach, blue eyes still piercing with the moonlight reflected in them.

Sazed had taken his gloves off at some point, his now newly exposed fingers fumbling with the fasteners on Taako’s pants. Getting them undone, Sazed reached in for Taako’s cock, his warm hand wrapping around him while stroking slowly. Taako writhed a bit, unused to someone else’s hand around him; a feeling that he didn’t mind one bit. Sazed’s other hand continued to feel down his chest, nails lightly scratching and eliciting goosebumps in their wake.

“You’re so beautiful, your Highness.”

“Don’t call me that with my dick in your hand, homie.” He said rather impatiently, thought Sazed merely laughed lightly.

“Alright. Taako,” His name sounded so charming in Sazed’s voice, his accent making it that much more enjoyable. “You’re unbelievably beautiful.”

“Tell me something I don’t know.” Taako mused as Sazed moved further down and straddled his legs. For a moment, Taako wasn’t sure what he was doing until Sazed’s head moved down, lips parting to allow the tip of Taako’s cock passed them. A sharp hitch in his breath alerted Sazed to the positive feeling, allowing more of his length to enter his mouth, tongue laving at the underside as it slid.

Taako was quiet aside from the short gasps and moans that came from his lips. There was something forbidden about this, something that felt wrong in such a good way. He knew that men were supposed to find women they were attracted to and wed them and only then bring them to bed. Not someone he’d known for less than a day. Not a man he had learned the life story of mere hours before.

Regardless of that, his weeping length fell from between Sazed’s lips, his chest heaving as he looked down at the half-elf as he got undressed. Theoretically, Taako knew what was going to happen, but his stomach flipped in nerves as Sazed returned over him, sliding the pre-cum at the tip of his dick down his own shaft. Getting into position, Sazed lowered himself, putting his head against Taako’s hole and Taako took a sharp breath in. When he did that, Sazed pushed his hips forward, the tip of his cock starting to slide into the elf below him.

It _hurt_. It hurt so badly.

Taako cried out, not in pleasure this time, but in the absolute pain of it all. As Sazed pushed his hips forward, it felt as though he was being split in half, and Taako felt tears sliding down the sides of his face and pooling in his ears. Sazed noticed his distress and lowered his head to one of Taako’s ears, kissing it gently.

“You’re so tight.” He reassured him which only made Taako choke on a sob. He thought this was supposed to feel good, but this only felt excruciating.

When Sazed was fully inside of him, Taako breathed heavily, sweat prickling across his skin. While he was still hard, the aching in his bottom half was almost all he could concentrate on as Sazed moved a hand to his hip.

“I’m going to start moving. It’ll get better.” Sazed placed a kiss to his cheek before his hips retreated slowly and pushed right back in.

“Fuck!” Taako swore between gritted teeth, the burn of it all making his legs quake around Sazed. The half-elf seemed to pay it no mind and continued the push and pull, and Taako did have to admit that it was getting easier. Once he’d loosened up a bit, Sazed was thrusting into him with enough force for the sound of skin slapping skin filled the room, Taako’s head thrown back in weak moans.

Almost of their own accord, Taako’s legs moved up to rest behind Sazed’s back, his calves seated on the man’s hips as he moved. Sazed was grunting with each movement, the sounds getting deeper and more frequent the more he moved. Now focused on something other than searing pain, Taako could feel the need within him to touch himself, a thin-fingered hand sliding between them to grab onto his cock. The moment he did, everything else melted away.

The sensation of being so full while his hand moved over his cock was quickly bringing him to the edge of orgasm. Sazed lowered his head to the crook of Taako’s neck, whispering dirty things and encouragements to get him to come. It hit Taako like something he’d never experienced, his back arching, chest meeting Sazed’s as he came between them. Doing his best to stroke himself through it, he painted their stomachs and chests with ribbons of cum, mouth slack and eyes shut tightly.

A few more thrusts and he felt Sazed’s cock give a twitch inside of him, warmth spreading through him. For a moment, he enjoyed the feeling until it burned hotter than anything he could imagine. Oh gods did it burn. Taako made a noise of pain, though Sazed did not move, only panting loudly into Taako’s neck. Just as the elf was about to say something, Sazed seemed to come back to earth, an arm moving up and around Taako. The half-elf moved to Taako’s side, still inside of him, but pulled him to his sweaty chest.

“Gods, Taako.” Sazed sighed after a few moments. Taako was just trying not to move lest the pain start again. “After that, I’m going to have to ask you to marry me.”

Taako’s eyes shot open, heart pounding.

* * *

Taako’s legs were still shaking as he redressed himself, trying not to acknowledge the blood and cum on the blankets of his bed. He’d have to deal with that later when his brain wasn’t so full of buzzing and anxiety. Walking was difficult, each movement of his legs sending another shock of pain to the base of his spine, though Sazed did make it easier by keeping his arm around Taako. The elf could lean a bit of weight onto him as they made their way back to the party as though they hadn’t disappeared for hours.

When they entered, Lup’s green eyes instantly found Taako’s, something akin to relief painting across her similar features. Seeing her twin walking towards her with the other Prince with him, however, filled her with more confusion.

“Lulu, listen,” Taako already felt out of breath despite only starting. “Me and Sazed have something to ask you.”

“Oh… Kay?” Lup was looking between her brother and Sazed whose smile seemed unstoppable at this point.

“I wanted to request your blessing, your Majesty.” Sazed said quietly.

“Blessing? For what?”

“We’re getting hitched.” Taako spat out, his arms reaching around Sazed as he beamed at his sister. Lup merely blinked rapidly in disbelief.

“I- Taako, can we talk for a second?” Lup looked over to Sazed before returning her gaze to her brother. Her eyes were wide, brows knit together, with her mouth in a straight line. “Alone?”

“Whatever you have to say you can say to both of us.” Taako asserted, a harsh knot settling in his throat. Lup looked absolutely exasperated before she clutched her hands tighter in front of her.

“Fine. You can’t marry a man you’ve just met.” Lup nearly rolled her eyes at the obvious nature of the statement.

“I know you’ve been shut-in but don’t tell me you’ve never heard of the love at first sight thing.” Taako insisted, a similar expression on his face.

“Taako. You wanted my blessing but my answer is no.” Lup was trying her best to be level headed, but anxiety filled her chest. Taako’s eyes narrowed and he let go of Sazed. Seeing one of the guards at the edge of the crowd, Lup turned on her heel, her dress making a pathway for her as she marched over to him. “The party is over, close the gates.”

“Of course, your Majesty.” The guard had obvious confusion in his voice watching as the Queen walked off towards the main hallway. At least, that was the plan until Taako had marched up behind her and reached out for her wrist in an attempt to get her to stop. She turned around quickly, her black leather glove coming off in Taako’s hand.  
“Give me that!” Lup protested, though Taako held it away from her.

“Lup. I can’t fucking do this shit anymore. What even happened that made you start to hate me so much!?” Taako was beginning to draw attention to them and Lup just crossed her arms and turned away, continuing on her path out of the room. “I can’t live like this, Lup!”

Lup finally looked him in the eye to see… Pain. Not anger as she was expecting. That was almost worse.

“Then leave.” Lup’s voice cracked and Taako recoiled as though he’d been hit. Lup began walking away again before something inside of him snapped.

“What the fuck did I ever do to you?” Taako’s voice was beyond loud at this point, pulling the gazes of all of those in the room.

“Enough Taako!” She called back without looking back at him. Despite not seeing him, she could hear the clacking of his boots behind her.

“No! What are you so fucking afraid of, Lup? Why don’t you just talk to me if you hate me so much? Why do you hate everything so much!?”

“I said enough!” Lup protested while whipping around, her bare hand sweeping into an arch out of anger and bright flames shooting from her fingertips. Before she could register the tingling of magic down her arm, Taako had jumped back, watching as the flames burnt their way into the floor leaving dark scorch marks and the smell of charred wood in their wake. Lup’s eyes went wide with horror, scanning the faces behind Taako.

“What on Earth-?”

“An elemental?”

“A sorceress!”

“Was that why…?”

“What about the old King and Queen? Did she-?”

"A monster."

These conversations were filling her ears and causing her body to tremble. While yes, magic was a part of their world, it wasn't something that one flaunted openly. That was the only reason that Taako was able to become an accomplished wizard, reading books in secret and practicing in even more.

“...L-Lup?” Taako asked before Lup took off in a quick run, her heels clacking loudly in the hallways. Just as Taako moved to take off after her, Sazed was back at his side, confusion and concern written on his features.

“Did you know about this…?” He asked Taako who shook his head, green eyes scanning the destruction of the floor.

“No.” He asserted, feeling no fear towards his sister, just more confusion. Everything started to make sense. Why Lup was kept so far from him, why she was so secretive and why he’d never even seen her without those gloves. Looking down, he saw the golden runes stitched into the leather, realizing they were suppressors.

Without any thought, he took off after Lup, her glove clutched in his hand as he did. Taako could vaguely feel the pain that was inflicted on him before that, but right now, his sister was more important. Turning the sharp corner out the front steps of castle to the main square below, he was met with the sight of Lup backed up against the fountain, the water now steam rising into the dark spring air. The people looking at her had faces similar to those that were in the ballroom, terror and straight confusion.

“Lup!” Taako called to her and Lup turned around like a wild animal in danger of being captured. It tugged at his heart strings as the heat from running caught up with him… Actually, the air outside felt so much hotter than it had before.

“Please just stay away from me.” Lup begged, holding her hands up in front of her in a protective position. From that protective position, another blast of flame let loose from her fingertips, burning into the stone of the stairs beneath Taako’s feet. He was about to fall back when Sazed followed by a few other guards rounded the corner, catching the Prince as he stumbled.

By the time Taako had recovered, Lup had taken off again and Taako followed, this time with Sazed and guards right behind him. He couldn’t see where she may have gone, though the smell of smoldering followed her as she ran.

“Lup, will you fucking stop for one second!?” He called out into the darkness of the night, flying down the curved stairs he knew Lup had gone down. The stone chamber that housed them felt like an oven, sweat dripping off of his temples as he threw himself down the stairs two at a time. Once he’d reached the ground beside the water that surrounded the peninsula from the mainland, Taako merely stared as Lup ran straight across it, water evaporating where her feet hit with each fall. Despite that, the water fell heavily behind her, filling back in right after she’d taken another step. It would have been incredible to watch had his heart not been beating so terribly hard.

It was hot now, despite the fact that it was night time, it felt like a day in the middle of the harshest summer and Taako walked back up the stairs while shedding his outer jacket. Looking at the damp skin of Sazed and the others, he knew it wasn’t just from the run he’d performed moments before.

“It’s much too early for it to be this warm.”

“And at night too!”

The cries continued and Taako’s ears wilted a bit. Sazed moved to Taako, a hand grasping tightly to his upper arm.

“What are you going to do?”

“Well obviously go after her.” Taako asserted.

“Taako, you can’t do that. It’s too dangerous! She’s too dangerous.” Sazed had genuine concern in his tone, his other hand gripping Taako’s other arm.

“Lup isn’t dangerous, she’s my sister for cripes sake.” Taako protested, though he understood the concern. “She’d never hurt me.”

“I was nearly burnt!” One of the guards barked back at Taako and Sazed dead panned over to him.

“You were the one not paying attention to when the group stopped and nearly went flying ahead.” He told him in a monotone which somehow made Taako feel better about the situation.

“Still!!” The guard shrieked and Taako broke free.

“I’m going to go get Lup.” He announced to the people still standing in the square, though their shawls and jackets had been quickly shed.

“What will we do without rule?” One of the common folk spoke up. Taako gnawed on his lip for a moment before turning to Sazed.

“I leave Prince Sazed in charge.”

“Please, Taako, you can’t go after her alone.” Sazed said one more time. Taako’s expression softened slightly, reaching out a hand to pat at the half-elf’s pale face.

“Don’t you worry about me, my dude. If anyone’s going to drag her back, it’s me.” He smiled gently and Sazed’s eyes fell away as he nodded.

Taking one last look at the people who seemed so lost, Taako walked off towards the docks, tucking Lup’s glove into his pockets for safe keeping. Maybe everything had been leading up to this moment and this was how he and Lup were going to reconcile.

Despite the awful situation, at least that seemed to be waiting for Taako at the end of all of this.


End file.
